The invention is based on a hybrid circuit breaker having a transmission, as claimed in the precharacterizing clause of claim 1.
The document EP 0 847 586 B 1 discloses a hybrid circuit breaker which can be used in an electrical high-voltage network. This hybrid circuit breaker has two series-connected arcing chambers, a first of which is filled with sulfahexafluoride gas as a quenching and insulating medium, and a second of which is in the form of a vacuum interrupter chamber. The second arcing chamber is surrounded by sulfahexafluoride gas on the outside. The main contacts of the two arcing chambers are operated simultaneously by a common drive via a simple lever transmission. Both arcing chambers have a power current path, in each of which the erosion-resistant main contacts are located and, in parallel with this, a rated current path, with this rated current path having only a single interruption point. During disconnection, the rated current path is always interrupted first of all, after which the current to be disconnected commutates onto the power current path. The power current path then continues to carry the current until it is definitively disconnected.
Simple lever transmissions such as these are comparatively difficult to match to the movement profiles required in hybrid circuit breakers. Furthermore, the bearing points are subject to mechanically very severe stresses, which results in the bearing points having a complex and expensive design, as a result of which the hybrid circuit breaker price is increased. If this configuration of the bearing points is dispensed with, then the time penalty for the maintenance work which is then required more frequently restricts the availability of the hybrid circuit breaker in a disadvantageous manner. Furthermore, the complexity for installing the lever transmission in the interior of the hybrid circuit breaker is comparatively great, owing to the restricted accessibility in this area.
The invention, as it is characterized in the independent claims, achieves the object of providing a hybrid circuit breaker having a transmission, which can be joined together easily in the interior of the hybrid circuit breaker.
The hybrid circuit breaker has at least two series-connected arcing chambers, which are operated by a common drive. These arcing chambers are preceded by a common transmission. This transmission has at least two transmission parts, which are designed such that they can be plugged together, with the first transmission part being firmly connected to the at least one first arcing chamber, and the second transmission part being firmly connected to the at least one second arcing chamber. The transmission has means which allow the movements of the at least two arcing chambers to be technically sensibly matched to one another and to be optimized with respect to the time sequence and switching speed thereof. It has been found to be particularly advantageous for the transmission to be designed such that it is self-locking both in the connected position and in the disconnected position since this means that there is no need for any additional locking apparatus or catches. Furthermore, the drive does not need to apply any particular holding forces in the two limit positions, so that a simple and particularly low-cost drive can be used here. The transmission can be installed comparatively easily, so that the time required for installation work for maintenance purposes is advantageously reduced. This simplified installation requires a comparatively short amount of time, so that the operational availability of the hybrid circuit breaker is advantageously increased.
The longitudinal axes of the two arcing chambers in one preferred embodiment of the hybrid circuit breaker lie in one plane and are inclined at an angle xcex1 to one another, with the angle xcex1 being less than 90xc2x0, and preferably being in the range between 68xc2x0 and 800xc2x0. This arrangement of the arcing chambers makes it possible to produce a hybrid circuit breaker which has a comparatively short extent in the axial direction, so the space required for this hybrid circuit breaker is particularly small.
The further refinements of the invention are the subject matter of the dependent claims.
The invention, its development and the advantages which can be achieved by it are explained in more detail in the following text with reference to the drawing, which illustrates only one possible embodiment approach.